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Apple lowered the prices of Mac Mini upgrades! and now 8x Superdrive!

KronicX said:
Unless Apple crippled the SuperDrive with firmware, the drive shipped with the first minis and the current ones include an 8x DVD-R/+R write SuperDrive.

Here is the link to the manufacturer product page: http://panasonic.co.jp/mke/en/device/storage/dmd/dmd_835.html

I have a mini that was delivered on Friday, January 21, and the model number for the superdrive is MATSHITA DVD-R UJ-835F
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So does yours burn at 8X??
 
You know the drive in that link is a model number: UJ-835-B, right? I know the difference isn't much, but that is a different model. Like you said, perhaps the difference is that the UJ-835-F has a firmware lock at 4X.

I certainly hope so...shouldn't take long for a hack to make it 8X if that's true.

Additionally, comparing the tech specs of the drive on Apple's page, and the model in the link you provided shows that the only read or write speed that matches up is the CD Read speed...CDR, CDRW, DVDR, DVDRW, DVD+R, DVD+RW...are all different.
 
HarmlessRabbit said:
I'm not being insulting, just stating a fact. People buying Mini's now are giving up a $129 license to Tiger that they would get free if they wait. You say you'll wait at least a year before upgrading to Tiger. You're still giving up the free license that you would have for your use then, even if you upgrade in a year.

So, people buying mini's now don't care that if they wait less than six months they would get a free license worth over 20% of the base cost of the mini. Therefore, they must not be very price-sensitive. Where's the insult? :confused: :confused: :confused:
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He's got a point but he missed something. You say you dont usually upgrade OSs til after several updates (e.g. 10.4.3 or so). So wait til tiger has a release date, then buy a mini. It will have panther but with a coupon for a copy of tiger in the box. 2 OS's for the price of one!
 
The prices haven't dropped in Norway either. 1GB RAM upgrade is still $462 at the nostore. It also claims 1GB DDR333 SDRAM - 2 DIMMs [+NOK 3.630,00] :confused:
 
24C said:
Chip NoVaMac said:
Careful, statements like that can get you banned. See the rules (https://forums.macrumors.com/announcement.php?f=1)
<OT>So O great one ;) "idiot" is a no no, but can I use "intellectually challenged" in future posts:D
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Not trying to be the "O great one". Given that the Mac mini will be bringing may newbies to the site, some of us that value MR and the contribution of the members want to help keep people around.

You might want to check out the posting in this section: https://forums.macrumors.com/forums/site-and-forum-feedback.66/

Yeah, we get in to the same down and dirty stuff at times, but for the most part we are trying to look out for what will make this a better place for all.

At least I don't go around and use graphic macros of rabbits with pancakes on their heads (sorry e - just had too do it :D )
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Chip NoVaMac said:
Continuing OT a bit. So if I have a studio DVD that has 7gb of data, then that DVD is a dual layer - right? So the only issue is whether the DVD players can read a DVD-R that is DL - right? And following that logic, if the player will read a DVD-R single layer, it should read a DL - right?

Thanks again all for the help. Trying to decide on a Mac mini with SDD or just get an external DVDR with DL.
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All Apple SuperDrives can read dual layer media, and I haven't heard anything about brand incompatibilities with the Panasonic or Pioneer units that Apple tends to use. A 7GB DVD is dual layer, right, and I'm 99.999% positive that the Mac mini (and any other Mac) will read it just fine.
 
Mark my words....

I think that within a few months, the Mac Mini, once in sufficient supply, will be UNDER 500. Apple really wants to get people hooked with this new machine and then when the next Power Mac comes along, people will start thinking hey let me get the KICK ASS new Mac since I already have switched. They will make a TON with this machine when they reduce it further and already are making lots of money. In the first DAY the local Apple store here completely sold out of both the Mac Mini and the iPod Shuffle.
 
Peyote said:
You know the drive in that link is a model number: UJ-835-B, right? I know the difference isn't much, but that is a different model. Like you said, perhaps the difference is that the UJ-835-F has a firmware lock at 4X.
Click to expand...
Usually in product model numbers the final letter such as B or S indicates the color of the model. Is that the case here? I don't know, but doing a search on the manufacturer's site brings up no F ending. Given that people have called Apple and Apple has confirmed that all drives are writing at 4x, I'm inclined to believe the drives have been crippled by firmware. That is if the people that have been called do in fact know what they are talking about.

As for me trying it myself, it is not my personal computer, and I have not tried to burn a DVD yet.

EDIT: The drive pictured on the manufactuerer's site, the -B model has a black bezel. The drive inside of the mini has no bezel.
 
10:20pm London time and no changes to the Applestore prices here either. C'mon Apple...get with the program (and while you're at it, ship some of the suckers here too!)
 
I really want to believe it is 8x write....
OT...
Just today I realised the Hard drive and the optical are mounted directly to a card.... does anyone care to speculate if a 2.5 to 3.5 adapter cable will mount fine... *yes I realize it won't fit back in the original case, yes I know I'll burn in eternal damnation*
 
krollster said:
10:20pm London time and no changes to the Applestore prices here either. C'mon Apple...get with the program (and while you're at it, ship some of the suckers here too!)
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looks like we will have to wait untill tomorrow for clarification ... or even longer with the edu prices... it took them 2 days until lthey got them right on the 13th

european members keep your fingers crossed ...

(if they adjust prices and i don't get an mail from apple untill thursday i gonna call them...hey 20€ are 20€ ;) and 4x to 8x are worth a call as well)
 
JGowan said:
Sounds like the Mac Mini wasn't selling at the rate Apple expected and needed them to. This probably will help get the numbers up a bit, I'm expecting.
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I doubt the problem is sales of the mini itself. Apple products are always hot in the beginning. Perhaps they will slow down later but only time will tell. I think the issue was that a lot of the big profit margins that apple is making on the mini are from adding things on and I think that people were opting against the 1gb ram chip because apple was just charging way too much. If they can get more people to splurge on the big chip then it's more money for them. I don't think A BTO option like additional RAM isn't a dealbreaker for too many people.
 
Some minis have 5400RPM drives already

Some minis have 5400RPM drives already and some have 4200RPM ones. I wonder if the same thing has happened with the Superdrive (some 4X and some 8X). :eek:

BTW, I thought the superdrive used in the Minis is the same used in the iBooks and PowerBooks, still the upgrade is US$200 for the portables, Is this rigth? :confused:

ncbill said:
Kudos to Apple for the upgrade price drops!

What I'd really like to see, however, is the option to buy a 5400RPM drive.

What could the price differential be, maybe $10 for the 40GB, $20 for the 80GB?

There seems to be a marked difference in performance between a 4200RPM 2.5" drive and 5400RPM 2.5" drive (but not so much 5400RPM ->7200RPM):

http://www.barefeats.com/pb12.html

Since all the 2.5" "deals" I've seen lately in the retail channel have been for 5400RPM drives, maybe this will be a future "silent" upgrade as well.

Maybe by the time the mini ships with Tiger?
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gorkonapple said:
I think that within a few months, the Mac Mini, once in sufficient supply, will be UNDER 500. Apple really wants to get people hooked with this new machine and then when the next Power Mac comes along, people will start thinking hey let me get the KICK ASS new Mac since I already have switched. They will make a TON with this machine when they reduce it further and already are making lots of money. In the first DAY the local Apple store here completely sold out of both the Mac Mini and the iPod Shuffle.
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I think they looked at the demand, saw better economies of scale than they had even predicted, and decided to discount right away rather than piss off adopters in 3-6 months with expected discounts.

I think they only changes we will see this year to the Mac Mini will be upgrades to Ram speed, just possibly video ram size (cross fingers) and HDD size (100 gig if the PBs get it) but with no further cost reductions.
 
gmanrique said:
BTW, I thought the superdrive used in the Minis is the same used in the iBooks and PowerBooks, still the upgrade is US$200 for the portables, Is this rigth? :confused:
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That's right. US Retail upgrade from Combo to (presumably 4x) SuperDrive is US$200 on the PowerBooks. Obviously, this will have to change with the next revision.
 
Just got refunded the price difference from Apple

Ordered a Mini the day they were annouced.

I just spoke with Apple today and they refunded on my credit card the price of the Bluetooth+AirportExtreme (was $150, now $99) including the tax.
It is covered under their price protection.
Made a note about my concern regarding the "missed purchase" of the 8x Super drive (was 4) (I did not upgrade the stock CD-RW/DVD-ROM) and the rep said he'd "make a note of it to his supervisor".

Hope this helps!
 
This was so good

Now we see that apple is going for the market, and that gig of ram was really expensive since only room for one DIMM :p
 
I just called Apple and the lady that I talked with (who verified with her supervisor) said that they were only 8x DVD READ and 8x CD WRITE. So I went on and on about why would they make a big deal about "8x superdrive" if it can write CDs at 8x - big freaking deal. Plus if you click on the "Learn More" link when configuring the BTO options, it clearly says what this lady stated, so she may just be reading this...

I tend to believe that it is indeed a bump to 8x, but that this hasn't made it through all the proper channels at Apple.

Also, why are the 5400rpm drives popping up randomly. Apple has to have some rhyme or reason about where they put them.

As a side note, when Apple replaced my 5400RPM drive in my powerbook (dead drive) with the wrong drive (4200RPM) and then went back and replaced it correctly, I noted that the price of the 4200 and 5400 rpm drive was about like $10 difference.

Can we get some official confirmation on the 8x DVD WRITE speed? I'd be interested in the 5400 rpm as well...
 
The iMac also got the price drop in the gig DIMM's of ram.
Would this mean that there will be price drops to the PM/PB also :confused:
 
bubbalwz said:
Also, why are the 5400rpm drives popping up randomly. Apple has to have some rhyme or reason about where they put them.
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Maybe Apple saw the light on performance after starting production, and decided that the 5400's would be better after all. We can only hope.
 
Chip NoVaMac said:
Maybe Apple saw the light on performance after starting production, and decided that the 5400's would be better after all. We can only hope.
Click to expand...

Yeah, its a substantial performance boost so it makes sense that this new leader of Apple's switcher campaign should get tweaked to perform as best as possible versus the PC world...
 
I love it

I love it when Apple goes after more than just Mac users with its products, because they are basically forced to bring down prices on their products because PC users just wont accept a Mac Tax. Apple should worry about increasing market share with the mini, not keeping huge profit margins. But I think they could have avoided reducing prices if they would have made the Mini as easy to open as an iMac.
 
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